San Antonio Spurs' Tony Parker, Boris Diaw, Kawhi Leonard, Patty Mills, and Tiago Splitter celebrate on the bench late in Game 5 of the 2014 NBA Finals against the Miami Heat Sunday June 15, 2014 at the AT&T Center. less

San Antonio Spurs' Tony Parker, Boris Diaw, Kawhi Leonard, Patty Mills, and Tiago Splitter celebrate on the bench late in Game 5 of the 2014 NBA Finals against the Miami Heat Sunday June 15, 2014 at the ... more

Photo: Edward A. Ornelas, San Antonio Express-News

Image 4 of 7

San Antonio Spurs' Patty Mills (from left), Tiago Splitter, Matt Bonner and Marco Belinelli react after a point during second half action of Game 3 in the Western Conference semifinals against the Portland Trail Blazers Saturday May 10, 2014 at the Moda Center in Portland, OR. The Spurs won 118-103. less

San Antonio Spurs' Patty Mills (from left), Tiago Splitter, Matt Bonner and Marco Belinelli react after a point during second half action of Game 3 in the Western Conference semifinals against the Portland ... more

Photo: San Antonio Express-News

Image 5 of 7

April 16, 2014: Lakers 113, Spurs 100

San Antonio Spurs' Tiago Splitter, left, and Patty Mills try to stop Los Angeles Lakers' Jordan Hill during the second half at the AT&T Center, Wednesday, April 16, 2014.

Assistant Coach Becky Hammon jokes with Patty Mills during the San Antonio Spurs public practice at the AT&T Center, Wednesday, Oct. 1, 2014.

Assistant Coach Becky Hammon jokes with Patty Mills during the San Antonio Spurs public practice at the AT&T Center, Wednesday, Oct. 1, 2014.

Photo: San Antonio Express-News

Popovich soon to face dilemma with playing time

1 / 7

Back to Gallery

SALT LAKE CITY — With Tiago Splitter set to return soon, and Patty Mills scheduled to follow in January, Spurs coach Gregg Popovich is on the verge of a “problem” most NBA coaches would kill for: Too many players, not enough minutes.

Last year’s championship team was already one of the deepest in NBA history at full strength. And now, with third-stringers Aron Baynes and Cory Joseph performing ably in replacement of the aforementioned pair, Popovich could have even more options at his disposal.

Joseph has been especially good of late, scoring 10 of his 12 points in the fourth quarter of last week’s victory at Memphis after Tony Parker went down with a mild hamstring strain, before tying his career-high with 18 in Saturday’s conquest of Minnesota.

Those outbursts boosted Joseph’s scoring average to a career-high 8.7 points. He’s also shooting 50.4 percent, another personal standard, with a 17.4 Player Efficiency Rating — you guessed it, his best ever.

If all that makes Popovich’s job tougher, well, Joseph is only too happy to contribute.

“It's definitely unfortunate that Patty is out and, hopefully, he can come back,” said Joseph, who will likely earn his second straight start after Parker was scratched for Tuesday’s game in Utah.

“But with him being out, somebody had to step up. When my name is called, I've got to perform. With consistent minutes, you just get a feel out there. The more experience I get, the more confident I am. I’m just learning a lot.”

Injury report: Splitter will also sit out Tuesday’s game after Popovich said Saturday that he could return against the Jazz in a limited role.

Wild, Wildest West: Dallas is on pace to win 60 games, a total that would have been good enough to at least tie for first in the Western Conference in six of the last 14 seasons.

This year? The Mavericks are in seventh, serving as a case example of what might be the most top-heavy conference race in league history.

“The West has been tough for a very long time,” Popovich said. “But this year, it’s even gotten to a new height. You add two or three teams to what was there last year, it’s something else.”

Most prominent among the newcomers are Golden State, the NBA’s best team at 17-2, and Memphis, tied for second overall at 16-4. (A feather in the Spurs’ cap: They’ve beaten both on the road.)

The white-hot pace will no doubt cool as the season wears on. But the win projections at the quarter point are jarring:

1. Golden State, 73

2-3-4. Portland/Memphis/Houston, 66

5. Spurs, 62

6-7. L.A. Clippers/Dallas, 60

8. Phoenix, 46

At one point last week, the top eight West teams had a combined 35-game winning streak.

Even crazier is the fact that the field is so thick even without Oklahoma City, crippled by early injuries to Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook after winning 59 and 60 games in the previous two seasons.

Much of the West’s success is coming at the expense of the perennial whipping boys in the East, which is on pace to lose the head-to-head competition for the 15th time in 16 seasons.

The West won 63 percent of those matchups last season, the greatest margin since 1947-48. This year, the disparity is even greater at almost 70 percent.